SOAP IN MY MOUTH....BUT, DID I NEED IT!!

TONIGHT'S FLOWER PHOTOS ARE FROM A LITTLE WALK AROUND OUR YARD THIS AFTERNOON

So nice to feel the cooler air this morning after this prolonged heat wave we have been having.  More heat on the way in a few days but for right now it is a nice reprieve & it looks like we have some welcome rain due in late Wednesday.  Just as I am not a cold weather person, I am not a hot weather person either & am so looking forward to our beautiful Autumn weather.  September & October are my two favorite months of the year & a month from now we will only be days away from that purely magical season beginning once again:))

Reader Pat left a comment about last night's telescope post that confused me at first until I looked at it closer.  Pat commented..WOW, a 4' 5" telescope!!! ;)  That's an error on my part alright.  Should have read 4.5 inches & not 4 feet 5 inches.  Thanks for pointing that out Pat:))  Maybe we'll see you in Sierra Vista this year eh.  Reader Jim from, LIFE'S LITTLE ADVENTURES sent an email late this afternoon wondering what cameras I use so will include that info with my camera/telescope post hopefully within the next couple days.

I envy the folks over at the GYPSY LIFE JOURNAL GYPSY LIFE JOURNAL as they paddle their new Kayak out onto a quiet Montana lake to the call of a nearby disappearing Loon. 

SUNDAY MORNING'S CRUISE THROUGH THE COUNTRYSIDE

A reader asked what the tower was in the last photo of Monday night's post.  That is actually an old concrete barn silo because this property where the 5 Seasons is located was originally a farm.  Farm was sold many years ago & the house & barn removed.  New owner planted the whole farm in rows of Pine trees much like a reforestation project.  Another owner came along years later & laid out a mobile home Park amongst the tall Pines & 'Wallaaaaa' here we are:)) 

I first discovered this hidden away little gem of a Park one frosty winter's night way back in the late 80's.  I was driving for a transportation company at the time based in Stratford Ontario.  That particular night I had picked up a couple at Pearson International Airport in Toronto & brought them to their home which happened to be this Park.  I will never forget finally reaching this area, traveling a short distance through a starlit forest & turning into the Park gates.  It was like driving into a Fairyland with it's Pine trees bowing over the roadways.  Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse as I drove quietly past the pale round globe lamp posts casting their warm glow onto the snow.   Christmas lights twinkled in cozy windows.  I remembered that night as a scene out of a Fairy tale & I never forgot it.  And, I never dreamed that one day I would actually be living right here in that very Wonderland itself.  It is so nice when nice things happen:))

Ever wonder what a Mascerator is or ever thought about installing one for the black tank in your rig.  Check out KAREN'S site for a Mascerator explanation & to see how husband Steve set that all up.  For anyone who has followed their blog for any time you know that Steve is one of those guys that does things right....the first time!!  No lazy short cuts & no cheapo inferior parts for this fellow.  Steve, an innovative guy has made many quality renovations to their older Safari Motor Home over the past few years.

CONE FLOWERS (ECHINACEA) 
Had a silly little thing happen a few mornings ago.  As many know I mix up a big conglomeration of stuff in my blender each morning.  Been doing it for well over 10 years now & I have a little blurb & video here at,  SOUNDS YUKKY-TASTES YUMMY.   I don't bother dirtying a glass so always just drink my morning 'Shake' right out of the blender.  This can take me half an hour or more as I move around doing morning chores.  Had set my 'Shake' on the bathroom counter beside the sink before hopping into the shower.  Yes, it is still possible to hop after 65. 

My bar of soap was pretty much used up so I tossed it over the shower curtain in the direction of the sink to retrieve later for the garbage.  Of course as soon as that soggy mush of soap left my hand it was ancient history & I never thought about it again.  Never thought about again until about 20 minutes later that is, when it made it's way into my mouth!!  Yep, the soap had landed ker-plop right into my Soy Shake.  Later sitting at the computer checking morning emails I had taken a big slug of Juice & noticed a slightly different taste but didn't clue in. 

My second gulp brought something into my mouth which I thought at first was a chunk of unblended carrot.  A split second later I knew it was not a carrot chunk!!!!  'Pitoooie, Pitoooie' back into the blender.  A quick glance into what was left of my Soy Shake confirmed the soggy cream colored blue oozy blob was no darn carrot!!  Nope, won't be doing that one again....10-4!!

Kelly noticed something in our Canadian Tire store flyer a few days ago that caught my attention for more than one reason.  A cigarette lighter adapter device that my IPod will securely fit in & play my IPod tunes through a vehicles own stereo system.  Same principle as Sirius/XM Satellite radio which I love so much.  Here's the kicker.....it's on sale all week at 70% off which brings it down between the 8 & 10 dollar range.  Needless to say I was right up there a couple days ago & grabbed myself one.  Works like a charm & also charges the IPod.  Package said it can be used for I-Phones as well.

I think the biggest photography mistake I constantly make & have been making for just about as long as I can remember is repeatedly forgetting to check my camera settings.  I always try to leave my cameras set on 'auto focus' & every time I switch over to 'manual focus' I will forget to return it to 'auto.'  Same with my 'Program' settings.  I rarely shoot on the full 'auto program' setting any more & am back & forth between 'aperture & shutter speed priority plus full 'manual'.  By default I leave it in 'Program Mode' but for sure every time I go off program mode I forget to return it back to program mode.  And, I wished I had a dollar for every time I have forgotten to turn any of my cameras off when not using them!!  Anyway, guess what I am saying here is to check your camera settings & batteries every time before heading out the door.  Now, if only I could get myself to do that!!

THE LAST PARAGRAPH:  Some may have noticed my recent absence of grumbling about being home for the summer.  Maybe it's knowing we have passed the half way point until our departure again.  Maybe it's my acceptance of the way it is.  Or maybe it's just my renewed appreciation for living where we do, right here in beautiful little Bayfield Ontario, Canada:)) 

BEGONIA FLOWER 

GROANER'S CORNER:((   Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.

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The

only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right
now...... AL.

MY FIRST TELESCOPE & WHAT IS REALLY BEYOND THOSE STARS??

 

THIS IS PORTER HILL LINE & IS THE ROAD WE USE COMING & GOING TO THE TOWN OF GODERICH 

Monday mornings 5 a.m. start to the day was quite a contrast to Sunday mornings start to the day.  Sunday morning it was a Cardinal's lone twittering as it awoke to a new day outside our open patio door.  Monday morning it was crashing thunder, lightning & heavy rain.  Both, sounds of nature on opposite ends of my waking up scale.  The rain was hard enough at one point to break down a bunch of our Hollyhock flowers.  No matter because I'm sure our parched & dusty vegetation sure loved the rain, while I in turn preferred the lone sleepy twittering of the Cardinal.

Sunday morning had me out on the Motorcycle for a few hours doddering around the back roads of our quiet & peaceful countryside.  Quiet at least until I come rolling along.  No, it's not my bike that makes the noise, it's me!!  I have a habit of singing on the bike & it is usually the same old tune....Johnny Horton's, 'Honky Tonk Man.'  And, I can sure belt er out pretty good too.  I have seen cows turn their heads, horses stampede, pigs cover their ears & chickens fly.  Yessireeee Bob,  I'm quite a noise coming down the road sometimes.

I LOVE MY LITTLE JEEP JAUNTS THROUGH OUR PICTURESQUE RURAL COUNTRYSIDE

I have another curious habit I do on the motorcycle too.  You will remember my big HOWDY DOODY MOTORCYCLE WAVE post a week or so ago.  Well, another curious little oddity I do when passing another bike is give a slight nod of the head along with a verbal............"Gday Sir".  I have absolutely no idea why I do that every time & have actually tried to stop that Australian "Gday" part but it always just seems to pop right out of me.  It's not like the other biker can hear my 'cordial greeting' as we pass each other at a combined speed of 120mph.  

But, here's the worry.....the biker can't hear me of course but he may see my lips flapping as I flash by.  I could be saying anything!!  What if this is a bad biker Dude & figures I have told him to...... well you know.  I always have to quickly check my rear view mirror for brake lights in case the guy is in the process of burning a U-Turn & coming after me for assuming I said something nasty.  Oh what a life it is I make for myself some days:))

UNUSUAL TO SEE THIS MANY EGRETS IN ONE PLACE AROUND HERE...HULLETT MARSH   
We here at the Bayfield Bunch happily welcome three new Followers today.  First is PIRATE & KITTY from THE GYPSY ROSE RV CHRONICLES followed by  Czardastx from JUST ANOTHER DAY & Erin from STITCHING TO STAY SANE.  Welcome aboard folks:))

I was a bit rushed to get this post out tonight & didn't have enough time to gather up some photos showing the various configurations for my camera & telescope set-up in relation to the topic below.  I will get that all together for another post shortly.  A lot of long term readers have seen those photos but we have a few new folks now.

In the summer of 1999 my Aunt Jean in Sarasota Florida drove up to Canada for a summer visit. We had been emailing back & forth for about a year & she knew of my keen interest in Astronomy. I might have had a few clues Aunt Jean was up to something but didn't suspect anything until she rolled into our driveway at the Old Weenie Roast Ranch.  Minutes later the trunk was opened & there, all carefully wrapped up in a blanket was a big white & very professional looking Meade 4'5" Reflector telescope. She had bought it as a gift for me & brought it all the way from Florida. What a great surprise & that was my very first telescope:))  

I spent many night's that summer hunched over that scope with my little red flashlight & my Star Charts, searching & searching for whatever I could see.   It took me deeper into space & it took me deeper into thought.

BIT OF A STEEP CLIMB COMING UP THE HILL FROM THE BEACH AT DEER PARK LODGE  

However, the following summer my Meade telescope met with a premature demise. I had left it on it's tri-pod & set up on the covered cement porch for the night with a blanket over it. In the morning when I came out, the scope was lying flat on the hard cement & broken. Only thing I can figure that happened is the barn cats while running around in the night must have scrambled up the blanket & pulled the whole telescope over.  Felt very, very bad about that for a long time
.

I never had another telescope after that until the summer of 2005 when I bought a new 8" Celestron Dobsonian reflector. Don't know what I was thinking because this scope was way beyond my learning curve & patience. Plus, it was heavy & had to be carried around in two pieces everywhere & assembled.  Found myself avoiding it & when I did get it set up I didn't seem to have the patience to operate it.  The scope ended up doing more sitting than stargazing.

It was a year later when we bought our truck & fifth wheel & I realized this scope would not be suitable for traveling anywhere.  I especially wanted to have a telescope to take south with us.   Heard of a place in London called O'NEIL PHOTO so gave the fella a call & wondered if I could trade in my big Mossmagator scope on something not as huge.  No problem he said so I headed myself over to London & traded it in on a smaller more portable Stellarvue 80mm Nighthawk Refractor telescope.

All was well & good except I did not have a proper tripod for this scope.  For whatever reason I didn't bother looking for a pod & after awhile the summer slipped on into Fall & the Nighthawk scope sat in it's case in the corner.  My interest waned even further & I eventually stuffed it under my bed.  Never even took it south for the winter.
  
That Nighthawk scope remained where I had put it for 3 years until one summer day in 2008 I hauled it out, dusted if off, & set it up in our driveway to think things over again. Decided to sell it so put an ad on the Kijiji site in London. Had one reply from a fellow by the name of John & as we emailed back & forth he suggested I should keep the scope because it had received good reviews in one of the Astronomy magazines.

With a few helpful telescope tips, some encouragement & a few accessory suggestions from John I began to re-think my selling plans. If I can adapt my Nikon camera to this scope & get myself another eyepiece plus something called an erecting prism I might just be on my way happily back to the starry night sky & some new day time photo opportunities.  In earnest I began the search for a way to adapt this scope to my camera.

With Google's help & few phone calls to O'NEIL PHOTO in London I was able to determine what accessories I needed for the scope to make it adaptable for my Nikon D50 as well as some different powered eyepieces for Astronomy purposes.  Packed up the camera & scope after breakfast one fine summer morning & headed back to O'Neil Photo in London.  Joe O'Neil was expecting me & it didn't take him long to round up the necessary pieces I needed. He had the same Nikon Camera I did & actually this scope was Joe's old scope so he was familiar with how everything worked. With some instructions, a few test photos out the window, & a hardy Hi-ho Silver, I was on my way home again secure in the knowledge I now had a dual purpose scope with which I was finally going to be happy.  And, that has proven to be true.

 

ALWAYS A LOT OF OCEAN & LAKE GOING FREIGHTERS IN THE GODERICH HARBOR LOADING UP ROAD SALT FROM THE BIG SALT MINE WHICH STRETCHES FOR NEARLY 3 MILES OUT UNDER LAKE HURON AHEAD OF THAT SHIP 
THE LAST PARAGRAPH:  I will have to be a little careful here in how I word this but those many clear nights under millions of stars gazing off into space over the years has left me with way more questions than answers.  I will be the first to stand up & say I don't know what is going on out there but I am more than ever convinced that it is far beyond & far greater than any of the religions of the world as we understand them.  Far, far greater & far beyond our human comprehension.  Don't know what it is & don't suppose I ever will, but I am becoming more convinced every day of what it isn't.  There, I hope I said that right.

THIS IS THE POND ACROSS THE ROAD FROM OUR PLACE WHERE I GET SOME OF MY FROG & CANADA GEESE PHOTOS...ON OUR MORNING WALKS WE COME IN FROM THE LEFT & FOLLOW THAT GREEN GRASS STRIP ON THE LEFT TO THE FAR END OF THE POND & THEN CROSS RIGHT TO THOSE TALL PINES & HEAD ACROSS A GRASSY STRIP INTO A PINE FOREST.  PRETTY DARN NICE WAY TO START THE DAY:))

GROANER'S CORNER:(( TO-DAY'S HUMOR: What is the difference between Bird Flu and Swine Flu? For bird flu you need tweetment and for swine flu you need oinkment.
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EMAIL THE BAYFIELD BUNCH:))
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OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/
The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right
now...... AL.

SEEING WITH 'A PHOTOGRAPHER'S EYE'

If you have a keen interest in photography you may see things a little differently than other people & tonight’s entire post is a collection of my thoughts gathered together from previous posts on, ‘Seeing With A Photographer’s Eye.’

I first heard the term, ‘Photographer’s Eye years ago back in the old 35mm film days when I first developed an interest in photography around 1965. My eye for photography didn't develop right away but after a few years I began noticing things I had never paid much attention to before.  It was a seeing & learning process that just gradually worked it's way into my mind.

I became aware of colors & shapes & how they interacted with the environment. Maybe it's how an old fencepost leans into the background or how the rusted color of an old hubcap stands out against the graying fender of an aging derelict car in a local junk yard. Maybe it's big billowing cloud formations on a bright sunny day or a radiant yellow Daffodil on an overcast day.

Gathering storms take on a new beauty if you have a photographic eye. Bird formations overhead take on meaningful shapes & a cactus bloom backlit by the morning sun suddenly becomes an object of wonder. Lengthening shadows stretch across landscapes as gentle winds ripple across resting ponds begging for your attention. It's a world of beauty we live in & we just have to open our eyes & minds to see it.

An interest in photography will greatly enhance that world for you.  Be aware & be prepared when a photo gently steps up & taps you on the nose.  Let the world around you become an unending source of inspiration as your photographer's eye constantly wanders through the environment around you whether it be subconsciously or in a deliberate search for the beauty that envelopes us.

You do not have to have all kinds of expensive equipment to take great photos. Thanks to the digital age my photography interests returned about 12 years ago. My 35mm film camera days had ended years before that & my Pentax cameras sat unused in a closet for nearly a decade.

After we bought our first computer in 1998 I slowly began to gain some interest & knowledge in something called, digital photography. Not knowing if this would interest me or not I bought a cheap little Hewlett-Packard 1 megapixel camera at a store in London Ontario.  As soon as I uploaded my first few pictures to the computer screen I was hooked. My head was immediately awhirl with all kinds of ideas & possibilities.

 
I used that simple 1 megapixel camera for years before moving up to something better but it was this first little digital camera that renewed my interest in photography all over again. Of course the resolution quality wasn't there but it opened my eyes once again to the beautiful world around me. I began to see things once again in a photographic way. Couldn't change lenses with this camera but I knew about composition. Couldn't change shutter speeds or apertures, but I knew a bit about lighting. Couldn't afford a more expensive camera but knew I didn't need one at the time. It was first things first & the first thing for me was to get my photographic eye back. The art of seeing!! All the greatest camera gear in the world is not going to help you if you do not see or are not aware of your surroundings.

 
Depending on their interests, a couple driving through a town will see different things. The lady may see the shopping mall on the right with it’s clothing stores, specialty shops & big bargain sign prices. The man, on the other hand will see the Golf course on the left & note the golfers, the golf carts & maybe any particular water or sand trap hazards. If I am in the back seat of that car the mall might only catch my attention if it’s an old town type mall with interesting architecture. But, for sure the Golf Course will catch my attention every time simply because of it’s beauty. The sweeping manicured greens, the swaying trees, flower colors, symmetrical landscaping, birds winging over the course & if it was in Florida, maybe I would be looking for Alligators too. And yes, I have seen Alligators on Florida golf courses.  With a photographer's eye you are going to see things differently than most folks around you.

 

A Corvette Car Club member will spot all the Corvettes on the highway where I probably would miss them. RV'ers will notice other RV's where many non RVing people wouldn't give them a second look. Bird watchers will see birds in a tree where other folks may only see the tree. It is the same thing in the photographer's world. I see things that others don't see simply because my conscious & subconscious mind is attuned to the things that interest me.  And, that's the key.

In regards to the photo above….Ten people standing in our sunroom looking out the window at the front yard probably might not have seen a small shaft of sunlight gently alight oh the Fuji Cherry blossoms coaxing them out of the darker background. The only reason I saw that is because of my 'photographer's eye.' Out of those 10 people looking out the window, one might be a bird watcher so it is the bird's at the feeders they will see. Another person's interests might be aggregates so they are probably looking at the many rocks in the gardens. Somebody else might be interested in old cars so their attention is triggered by the 56 Ford Crown Victoria going by. A horticulture person will notice all the shrubs, greenery & flowers. Out of all those things which I am aware of as well, my attention was grabbed by a moment’s ray of sunlight on a cluster of Fuji blossoms.  And, remember me saying earlier about being aware & prepared when a photo steps up & taps you on the nose:))

In beach sunset photos a lot of people will see the sun & water & take a picture of that just as I did. However, my eye spotted a lone chair further down the beach & my mind immediately began calculating the position of the descending sun, the water, & the silhouette photo that combination could produce. This is one photo in a series of 10 that resulted because of, 'the photographer's eye.'

Because I think in the terms of photography, I see in the terms of photography. Everything out there is a photograph to me. Shadows, cloud formations, colors, textures, foregrounds, backgrounds, people's faces, animals, birds, etc. Everything....... It is the art of seeing & it is the art of wanting to see. The art of looking & understanding what you are looking at. The art of seeing the finished photo in your mind before you even take it.

  
Now, let me back up on this 'art' word I have been using quite a bit here. It's one I hesitate to use but haven't come up with a good substitute for. In the true sense of the word I do not consider myself an Artist. However, the art of seeing with a photographic eye is something that I believe a person can develop if they want to, but it takes time. Like most anything, the more you do it the better you are going to become at it. But, the interest has to be there if you are going to be enjoying what you are seeing. And, if your enjoyment is there it is going to show up in your photos.

Here's what I suggest you do if you have a beginning interest in photography. There are many great digital cameras on the market & I would say start out with a simple point & shoot camera. Read your manual & understand what your camera can & cannot do. If you are in an area offering photography courses, do that. I did & it was a huge help to me in the beginning to understand the basics of photography. Pay particular attention to the art of composition because that is a biggy. I am fortunate in that composition has always come natural for me. Makes up for my struggles trying to understand the technical side of photography.

Would you believe that back in 1990 I was able to finagle myself into being accepted to Fanshaw College’s (London Ontario) well known professional photography course. I lasted 10 weeks & I was gone. Learned & enjoyed a lot of practical stuff but could not nail down the mathematical oriented side of things. Realized too late that the course was really geared to professional & commercial type high end photography with much emphasis on calculating studio light ratios, etc. I had absolutely no interest in being a wedding, portrait or baby photographer. When it got into learning & understanding something called logarithms I knew my days were numbered, & they were & I was out of there!!

I think my first digital cam was under a hundred dollars. In this computer age we are soooooooo fortunate that we can step out the door, crack off a bunch of pics, step back inside, upload them in the computer, & within a couple minutes we can have our results right in front of us on a screen. And, no cost:)) No more pricey film, expensive development charges, with days or weeks of waiting for results. Now, how easy is that. What a great advantage for people with photography interests nowadays compared to years ago. So, grab your cam, open your eyes & mind to your surroundings, & start clicking away:)) Don't just think about it.....get out there & do it!!

  
THE LAST PARAGRAPH: These photography opinions are just my opinions & are not coming from a professional photographer. They are just the thoughts of someone who happens to enjoy the hobby of photography just like the rest of you who have had the interest & taken the time to read all the way through this loooooooong post:))

GROANER'S CORNER:((  Having a camera makes you no more a photographer than having a hammer and some nails makes you a carpenter.  And, also keep this in mind....The quickest way to make money at photography may be to sell your camera.

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EMAIL THE BAYFIELD BUNCH:))
stargeezerguy@gmail.com
OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/
The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right
now...... AL.